1. Field
The present disclosure relates generally to aircraft control devices, and more particularly, to apparatuses for controlling aircraft pitch.
2. Related Art
The most common design of an aircraft control yoke (i.e., pitch and roll control) is a steering (i.e., roll) mechanism mounted at the top of a vertical column that extends to or through the floor of the cockpit. The yoke is pushed forward and pulled backward by the pilot to control pitch. Rotation of the steering mechanism is transferred to the aircraft roll control mechanisms, while fore and aft motion is transferred to the aircraft pitch control mechanisms.
The current designs of aircraft control yokes suffer from several drawbacks. First, the control column extending from the yoke is positioned directly in front of the pilot and between the pilot's legs. Current designs also include associated mechanisms occupying the space under the cockpit floor. Some horizontally oriented control columns have been developed for use in flight simulators and single engine planes. However, the solutions implemented in flight simulators and single engine planes would not meet regulatory requirements and/or pilots' expectations in a large commercial aircraft.
The solutions used in flight simulators and single engine planes would extend directly forward into the front wall of the cockpit using space that is occupied by large digital instrument panels in commercial aircraft. These flight simulator and single engine plane solutions employ a control wheel through the front wall that extends to a floor-hinged control column apparatus that further extend below the floor. Such solutions involve pilots perfoiining control motions that pilots typically find awkward compared to the traditional vertically mounted control columns. Pilots are accustomed to moving in an arc motion when pulling the control column to a fully-aft end of travel causing the airplane to be at a fully nose-up position. Horizontally oriented control columns used in flight simulators and single engine aircraft are also completely supported by plain bearings or rollers and guide rails prone to backlash, friction and contamination. Some solutions use wire rope cables or roller chains in critical control paths, both of which may be labor-intensive, costly, and prone to undesirable tactile sensation. Solutions used in flight simulators and single engine aircraft also lack redundancy required by government regulations for such flight control inceptors and associated mechanisms in large aircraft.
In view of the above, it would be desirable to control aircraft pitch using a control mechanism that does not extend through the floor of a cockpit, extends through the front of the cockpit without limiting any instrument panel components, and is not supported by sliding structures nor exclusively by any bearing or wheel structures.